Thursday, December 20, 2012

President Mickey Jacobs, FAIA, of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has appointed Dean Sakamoto, FAIA, LEED AP to serve on the 2013 Committee on Disaster Assistance. Others on this committee include Rachel M. Minnery, AIA, LEED AP of Seattle, Washington; Michael D. Lingerfelt, FAIA, LEED AP of Orlando, Florida; Gregory R. Beste, AIA of East Providence, Rhode Island; James E. Butch" Grimes, AIA of Birmingham, Alabama; and Robert W. Thiele, AIA of San Diego, California. Dean Sakamoto's interest in this area is based upon his belief "...that our communities and buildings today must not only be sustainable, but they must also incorporate resilient design strategies." Resilient design has to do with the built environment's ability to absorb the effects of predicted and unpredicted changes and impacts due to natural or human-induced events. DSA's Juliet Rice Wichman Botanical Research Center, a LEED Gold building on Kauai, Hawaii, is designed for hurricane resilience.

From
November 29 to December 6, 2012, Dean Sakamoto, FAIA, LEED AP; Karl Kim, Ph.D., University of Hawaii Urban Planning Professor, who is also executive director of the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC); along with coastal geologist and land use law expert, Dennis Hwang, of UH Sea Grant, visited the most severely damaged areas along the New York City
and New Jersey coasts to support the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)
efforts in recovery from Hurricane Sandy. The team was hosted by Professor Ronald Shiffman, FAICP of Pratt Institute’s GraduateCenter for Planning and the Environment and met with community leaders, local officials, New York City planning and design professionals, residents, building owners, and those involved in relief and recovery
efforts. Coastal storm surge, flooding, and infrastructure failure were the
main causes and consequences of Sandy’s
impact. Sandy struck the east coast on October 29 of this year. Dean Sakamoto leads the Urban Resilience Lab at UH Planning and is the lead developer of NDPTC's HURRIPLAN, a design-based training course for hurricane resilience. HURRIPLAN will be presented at the Center for Architecture in New York City as part of its September 2013 Design For Risk and Recovery events. Dennis Hwang photo above of the remains of a home on Union Beach, NJ.

Friday, December 14, 2012

In the Honolulu Weekly cover story, "Architecture Matters Now!" author and architecture critic Curt Sanburn describes the convergence (and resurgence) of interest in the Aloha State's capital city. Sanburn cites the opening of AIA Honolulu's Center for Architecture in downtown; plans for Kakaako, a central urban industrial district which appears to be turning a corner towards its long anticipated redevelopment; and coincidentally, Dean Sakamoto's return to Honolulu and start-up of the Docomomo US Hawaii Chapter with a team of local preservationists, designers and historians. Sakamoto is the Hawaii Chapter's founding President. Sanburn wisely states: "It’s Honolulu’s time to look back and move forward, to lovingly defend itself, embrace itself, and build itself as a blessedly unique city of the world. Whether it’s the architects at the AIA or the scholars at Docomomo, their passions and their conversations will help to forge a new Honolulu." This article appeared in the November 14, 2012 issue of the Weekly which can be found at http://honoluluweekly.com/cover/2012/11/architecture-matters-now/

The Modern House Renovation for Dr. Lauren Cohn in Woodbridge, Connecticut was the recipient of a 2012 AIA Connecticut Merit Award. A masterpiece of mid-century modern design which was originally designed by Yale architecture professor King-Lui Wu
(1918-2002) for Benjamin Dupont and built in 1952. DSA's primary objective was to retain the identity and character of King-Lui Wu's architecture, yet update and improve artificial lighting and worn finishes, while "softening" the acoustics and areas of everyday activity such as the kitchen, living room and master bedroom. Lighting designers Atelier Ten and the Westmount Group, builders of the project were key collaborators. Vicky Sambunaris photo above.

Dean Sakamoto presented the concept of resilience in architectural design as it relates
to the current standards of sustainability. Resilience in the built environment
has to do with society’s ability to rebound or recover from widespread
disruption caused by a natural or human-induced event. The first area of his talk addressed Hawaii’s vulnerability to coastal storms and how informed
planning and design can prepare us for the associated hazards of high winds,
heavy rains, interior flooding and coastal surge before disaster strikes. The
second area coupled sustainable design and
resilient mitigation strategies for commercial and institutional buildings. Dean's presentation ended with a mini-design exercise in which the audience of over 50 architects made sketches for a community safe room for a public school.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Read about the reinterpretation of Yale's historic Adee Boathouse(1911-2007) as part of the City of New Haven's soon to be built community rowing facility, the Boathouse at Canal Dock. Pictured above is the former Adee prior to its razing and an illustration of the future Boathouse at Canal Dock slated for completion in 2014. DSA is responsible for the interpretive design elements of the new boathouse by Greg Wies Gardner Architects and Langan Engineering. Rendering at right by Greg Wies Gardner Architects and photo at left courtesy of City of New Haven Department of City Plan.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Senator Daniel Inouye, the most senior member of the U.S. Senate and the President Pro-Tempore, and his wife, Irene Hirano Inouye, President of the US-Japan Council, toured the completed Native Hawaiian Cultural Learning Center and the Juliet Rice Wichman Botanical Research Center on August 23, 2012. The Senator was responsible for National Tropical Botanical Garden's Congressional Charter in 1964 and the Federal Grant that funded construction of the new Learning Center. Chipper Wichman, Director and CEO of NTBG, led the visit as Dean Sakamoto added his insight to the design features of both projects. Jon Letman photo, courtesy NTBG

Saturday, August 18, 2012

The Hawaii State Historic Places Review Board unanimously approved the nomination of the Henry F. and Florence E. Davis Residence to its Register. DSA designed the structural stabilization, renovation and restoration of this property located on historic Pacific Heights Road, saving it from demolition. According to historian Don Hibbard who drafted the nomination: "The
house retains a high level of integrity with its main living areas very much
intact...most notably the kitchen, bathroom, and basement, these
changes were handled in a sympathetic manner, and do not detract from the
overall historic impression of the home." Craftsman Rich Burkam of New Haven, Connecticut and Furukawa Custom Buildiers of Kailua, Hawaii were collaborators on this project.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Design Connects was the theme of the AIA National Convention
in Washington D.C. on May 18-20. In
addition to the numerous continuing education programs and design exposition,
Congressman Earl Blumenauer of Oregon’s keynote address on making our cities more livable
resonated with the DSA Team.

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About DSA

Dean Sakamoto Architects LLC (DSA) was founded in 1999 to provide high-quality architectural design for clients in the Northeast U.S. and Pacific Region. With a special focus on fine design, sustainability, civic engagement, and collaborative, personal service, DSA’s experience includes designs for institutional, residential, urban and transportation projects in temperate and tropical environments. Whether designing large structures, civic projects, intimate residences, retail spaces, or scholarly exhibitions relating to architectural history and cutting-edge design practices, DSA’s expertise and hands-on approach reflect a design philosophy based on the wisdom of simplicity.